U.S. Appeals Court to Federal Judges: Stop Secret Trials

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Even as it upheld the conviction of a Columbian drug boss, the federal appeals court in Atlanta cautioned the U.S. District Court in Miami to stop holding secret trials. And the interim U.S. attorney said his office would no longer be party to secret court cases. The convicted drug lord, Fabio Ochoa, had claimed in his appeal that the federal court in Miami used secret dockets to shield prosecutions of possible defense witnesses. He cited one 2002 case in which another Colombian drug dealer was convicted and imprisoned in complete secrecy. (10/21/05)